OXNARD – Another year, another CIF-Southern Section title for the Northview High School wrestling team.

Steven Salinas, Frank Martinez and Matt Lopez won individual titles and the Vikings scored their fourth consecutive division title and eighth this decade by winning the Northern Division championship at Pacifica.

Northview had five competitors wrestle for individual titles, with Salinas winning at 119, Martinez at 130 and Lopez at 215. Martinez, who had three falls, one technical fall and one major decision, was named lower weight MVP.

The Vikings, who scored 262 points to edge second-place Sultana by six points, qualified eight to next weekend’s CIF-SS Masters Meet at Temecula High. The top five competitors in each of the 14 weight classes moved on to Masters.

“We just went out and do what we do,” said Lopez, who beat Silverado’s Mike Jormat 4-2 in the 215-pound final. “We just go out there and break people.

“I’m proud to be CIF champions, not just me, but the whole team. All these guys train all year long to do this right here. The coaches, (coach David Ochoa and assistants Bobby Bellamy and Vince Le Farge) … We came here to do what we did, and we did it.”

Salinas, who had four wins by fall, got the Vikings on a championship roll with a 5-3 victory over Hesperia’s Brian Pinto to win the 119-pound final.

The senior, who led 3-0 after two periods, was penalized one point for stalling with 26 seconds left. Pinto then followed with an escape and a takedown for an apparent 4-3 lead with six seconds left. But after a Northview protest, both officials conferred and reversed their original decision per the stalling rule. The time was put back to :40 with Salinas leading 3-1. He then allowed Pinto an escape before getting a takedown with four seconds left to clinch it.

“They should have stopped the match because I was on top (when the stall rule was applied) and awarded him a point and put him on top,” Salinas said. “So after he took me down, they reversed it and (put the time back on the clock when the violation occurred).

“It’s OK. It just shows that I have to work harder and not let that happen again.”

Martinez used a takedown and near-fall for a 5-0 lead in the first period, a reversal and near-fall to go up 9-2 in the second and a takedown and two near-falls for a 15-2 lead in the third before having to settle for a 15-4 victory.

“I was just trying to get the (fall), get the extra points to help us win a CIF championship,” Martinez said. “I wanted those points.

“It was great to win, but now I have to come back next week at Masters.”

Lopez was steady in scoring a 4-2 victory over Jormat in the 215-pound final. He used takedowns in the first and second periods to take a 4-1 lead before giving up a late escape to win 4-2.

Jarmillo, who had three wins by fall, rallied from a 2-0 deficit to tie Sultana’s Ryan Fillingame at 2-2 following a pair of escapes, but the Sultana wrestler got a key takedown near the end of the second period for a 4-2 victory.

Steve Ramirez writes about public safety issues including criminal justice and fires in Inland Southern California. He previously covered high schools, college football and motor sports for the San Gabriel Valley Tribune since 1989. He's a big fan of Buddy Holly and loves World War II movies.

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